The 'Counting On' stars Jim Bob Duggar and his wife, Michelle Duggar confirmed via their website on 5 March 2018 that their son Josiah Duggar is engaged to his girlfriend, Lauren Swanson. On their website they shared:

We are so excited to announce that Josiah and Lauren are officially engaged!! We have prayed for many years that the Lord would bring the right spouses to each of our children. We have known Lauren and her family for a very long time and have seen how she has grown in her knowledge and understanding of the Lord. She is a wonderful, caring, compassionate young lady, full of zeal for Christ. We are very thankful for her. We pray that their lives together will be full of joy and happiness and that God will use their lives for His service. We are looking forward to another Duggar wedding soon!

In an interview with the US weekly, Josiah shared that the engagement is an exciting, big step in their life and the whole thing was very meaningful. The place where he proposed Lauren was the exact spot where Lauren's parents were engaged, and the venue holding a lot of family history made it an even special place for Lauren.

Josiah, Lauren engaged (Photo: hollywoodlife.com)

Likewise, the confirmation of the duo taking their friendship to courtship came to their fans' recognition after ET reported on the same earlier this January. The 'Counting On' star then told People that they were courting on 23 January 2018 and were overjoyed to begin the new phase of their life together.

Meanwhile, Josiah even shared that through the years, their families' friendship has allowed them to get to know each other as friends. Josiah also said that he had found a great friend even better than he could have hoped for or imagined.

He also appreciated Lauren's Christ-like character, tender heart toward others. Josiah further added that it always stood out to him that in every situation, Lauren looked for the one who appeared to be sad or lonely, and quickly brightened their day by sharing words of hope, an encouraging scripture, a prayer or even a simple smile with them.

Additionally, did you know, Duggar family strictly follow the rules on dating and marriage? During the courtship period, possible partners spend time together with family members there for supervision, and only side hugs are allowed. Similarly, while getting engaged, they can only hold hands and can share their first kiss at their wedding.